Grand gascon saintongeois

Breed Rating

Breed Details

General

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The Grand Gascon Saintongeois is a fairly new breed of hunting dog that was created by Baron Joseph de Carayon LaTour of the Chateau Virelade during the mid 19th century. This breed is the living progeny of the now extinct Saintongeois Hound and the Grand Bleu de Gascogne.

This breed has the characteristics and the physical features of the two breeds from where it was developed. The Grand Gascon Saintongeois is first and foremost a hunting breed, one that has great strength, staying power, an ultra sensitive smell, a deep powerful voice and great perseverance that makes the breed a competent hunter of large game like deer, wild boar and foxes. This dog is cunning and intelligent, well able to maneuver and drive the game to the point of the hunter's gun. The Grand Gascon Saintongeois that was originally developed to hunt roe deer because of its speed may not be as large as the Grand Bleu de Gascogne but it has a more elastic gallop. These dogs will hunt in packs or individually and it can not be avoided that cuts and nicks will result from working in dense vegetation. Wounds and scars that would result from encounters with bigger game are considered to be honorable wounds and show the courageous nature of this breed.

Color

The colour of the coat is white with black patches, sometimes speckled or ticked with black.

Coat

Their coat is short and dense.

Personality

The Grand Gascon Saintongeois may be a through and through hunter, valued by the hunting enthusiast in the family but the breed does have a gentle, calm and affectionate nature' qualities that endears the dog to other members of the family. A Grand Gascon Saintongeois makes a wonderful family companion as this is an obedient breed, always eager to please and acquiescent to the commands of the master. This breed is patient and gentle with the younger members of the family. A well socialized dog will be a good companion and playmate of the children. Accustomed to hunting in packs this breed gets along well with other dogs although care must be taken in allowing the dog to be around other smaller pets. This breed has a strong prey drive and may see other pets as prey. This breed is friendly with people it recognizes but can show aggression towards strangers. Early socialization and training is therefore necessary to curb these unwanted tendencies of the dog. Training would not be a problem as these dogs are intelligent and known to respond well to positive methods of training.

Care

These dogs have very little grooming needs. The short smooth coat practically cleans itself as it naturally repels dirt. Regular brushing would remove dead hair and maintain the good condition of the skin and the coat. As with other breeds of hunting dogs with pendant ears, this breed is also prone to ear infection. Regular ear cleaning is necessary.

Training

These breeds are intelligent and are very easy to train. Bathing should be done when necessary.

Activity

This breed would do well in a kennel or in a home with a large well fenced yard. This is a working breed and they would naturally require vigorous exercise. These dogs should never be kept in apartments as apart from the tendency to bark when bored and when parted with the human family for a considerable time, these dogs would yearn for large open spaces.